Prospective Students
All EEB students are affiliated with a home department. Prospective students should gain admission and be enrolled in their home department prior to pursuing admission to EEB. Applications to EEB are reviewed and processed twice each year with deadlines of July 15 and Jan. 15.
Where and when do I start?
Start by talking to your major advisor. Tell them you are interested in EEB and gain
their support for joining the program.
We encourage you to join the EEB program as early in your graduate career as possible, ideally when you enroll at MSU or in your first year of graduate study. This will help the program meet your course needs, and it will allow you to join a community of students with allied interests. However, we also recognize that some students may join the program later, either because your interests have evolved in the direction of ecology, evolution, and behavior or because the requirements of your home department make it more difficult to fulfill the dual-degree requirements.
In general, PhD students should aim to apply before their comprehensive exams. In any case, no student (MS or PhD) will be admitted into the program during the year in which they plan to graduate.
Are there prerequisite courses I need for admission into EEB?
Students are expected to have had preparation in biology, chemistry, calculus, and
introductory statistics, although prerequisites will vary by program and advisor.
It's up to the discretion of your home department and advisor to determine if additional
coursework will need to be taken. There are no specific prerequisites for EEB's required
courses.
Once I am accepted to my home department, how do I apply to EEB?
In a single email, send the following four documents in advance of the annual deadlines
(July 15 and Jan. 15) to eeb@msu.edu:
- The EEB Graduate Program Application
- A one-page statement of your research and professional goals
- A current CV that outlines education, work experience, publications, presentations, and anything else you would like to include
- A statement from your major advisor (a core or affiliate member of EEB) that confirms your enrollment in a home department and acknowledges their support of your application to the graduate program